Something New
by Queequg471
Summary: Sometimes, even the best detectives need help. Crossover with The X-Files. NEW PENNAME, FORMERLY FAITHTIMFAN16
1. The New Case

**A/N: So I was watching the X-Files episode Excelsis Dei yesterday and the case reminded me of a case we might see on SVU, and a crossover fanfic started forming in my head. Sooooo...here's a crossover between (in my opinion) the two greatest dramas in the universe, The X-Files and SVU!**

**Some notes about this story: I'm screwing the X-Files timeline all up, because this story takes place in the early seasons of the X-Files, around season 6 generally, but I love Doggett and Reyes too much to not put them in it, so they will make an appearance later. I also love the Lone Gunmen waaayyy to much not to put them in, so they will definitely be making an appearance (actually, Byers is my future husband, he just doesn't know it yet lol). **

**Shippings: Definitely MSR, possibly DRR, possible EO. **

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"New case, people!" Captain Donald Cragen called, striding into the squad room where his four best detectives were working busily over their desks.

The detectives groaned, visualizing their already huge workload growing ever larger. Olivia Benson, Elliot Stabler, Fin Tutuola and John Munch avoided eye contact with their captain as best they could, suddenly appearing very interested in their shoes.

"Don't give me that look, you all. I know you heard me," Cragen said. "This is a high profile case. The victim has been spewing all about it to any reporter, magazine or pedestrian who will listen. It's all over the news now, and it looks very bad for Manhattan SVU if we don't make an effort. So, as of now, all of your major cases are being turned over to different boroughs. The ones ready to go to trial are being taken over by Queens, Brooklyn is taking any with solid leads, and so on. From now on, especially Benson and Stabler, will focus exclusively on this case."

Resignation on their faces, the detectives turned to the captain.

"OK, Cap. Walk us through this case. What's so big about it?" Munch deadpanned.

"Vic's name is Jennifer Meyer. She's 23, a junior at NYU, says she was raped walking home from classes at night a week ago, and the police have not only been doing nothing, they've been openly laughing at her."

There was a pause. "Captain, we have many, _many_ rape cases that are certainly more pressing then this seems to be. That woman has voiced an incredibly common complaint. " Olivia stated. "I mean, just to start with we have a beating/rape by a woman who claims to have no recollection of –"

"This woman claims she was raped by an invisible entity." The captain interrupted, never looking up from the file.

The pause was much longer this time.

"...Well, that's not so common." Munch finally stated.

The detectives looked at each other with expressions of shock, puzzlement, amusement and disappointment.

"And apparently, based on the 'negative reactions' of the NYPD that this woman has come in contact with, they felt it necessary that we bring in some...assistance, to help us on this case." Cragen said, finally looking up from the file.

"Who?" Elliot asked.

"The FBI in Washington is sending us agents that they call 'specialists' in this kind of phenomenon. Supposedly they investigate the paranormal."

A medley of voices spoke at once as soon as Cragen got to 'FBI'.

"The Feds?!"

"Jesus, Captain, don't you know what the Feds think of us?"

"Do they need to be any more obvious about thinking we can't handle this ourselves? Why the hell would they bring out Feds all the way from Washington?"

Cragen silenced them all with a loud whistle.

"First off, I don't know why the Feds are coming out from Washington, except that we don't exactly have a department of the NYPD marked 'Alien Investigation'. You had better make nice with them, though, because if we pull this off, it looks very good for us, and that'll make all of our lives easier. Second of all...I don't even have a second of all. Just _don't_ screw this up."

Fin sighed. "Fine. Who are these agents they're sending?"

Cragen glanced briefly at the file.

"The main agents are called...Mulder and Scully."

"_Spooky _Mulder? You've called in help from Mr. and Mrs. Spooky Mulder?" Elliot said incredulously.

"Spooky? Do I even want to know?" Olivia said.

"Ahh...Fox Mulder's reputation precedes him." Elliot snorted. "He studied psychology at Oxford and he was supposed to be one of the FBI's most brilliant analysts, but he found this basement stash of unsolvable files called X-Files and now he spends all of his time in that basement, obsessing about aliens and government conspiracies to anyone who will listen. FBI's tried everything to shut him down, even sent down a partner to spy on him about six years ago, but she just became his ally. There's a ton of reports that their relationship goes deeper then...friendship." Elliot glanced at Olivia quickly with the last sentence.

"Even so, Stabler, they have experience with this that we don't, and we need that expertise." Cragen said. "I've arranged a meeting with them for when they come in tomorrow at 3. I expect you all to be there, and to extend them every professional courtesy." With that, Cragen swept back into his office and closed the door with a solid bang.

The detectives sighed and turned back to their work, but Olivia found herself not quite able to concentrate. She had to admit that she was intrigued, despite herself, at this new turn. _I guess I really haven't seen it all_, she thought wryly, smiling to herself. She'd been so sure nothing could shock her anymore.

Olivia snorted at how ridiculous that sounded and turned back to her work. Tommorow would be interesting, that was for sure.

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**A/N#2: So what does everyone think? I wasn't sure whether to post this on the X-Files Fanfic page or the SVU one, but I decided since this story is set with the SVU squad, I'd post it here. Read, enjoy and remember: many reviews makes happy author, happy author makes many updates and EO and MSR goodness!  
**


	2. The New Arrivals

**A/N: Long weekends are good excuses to write lol. And since I'm probably going to be spending a good chunk of the next three days with a three year old and a five-month-old, I'd better get a chapter done while I can...**

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The alarm's angry beep roused Olivia from a fitful sleep. She groaned, fitful sleeps were so rare nowadays. Shrugging off the exhaustion, she left her couch and stumbled to the bathroom.

Twenty minutes later, Olivia was showered, changed and had brushed on a bit of makeup. Glancing at her watch, she saw that it was still only 7:30. She didn't have to be at work for another half an hour, and it wasn't as if spending the day catching rapists, pedophiles and the general scum of the earth was anything to look forward to.

Olivia flopped back down on the couch with a sigh. Maybe this morning she'd actually eat...maybe she'd try to fall into a somewhat normal routine. Olivia vetoed that idea with a shake of her head. To fall into a normal routine one day, she would have had to get a normal sleep the night before, woke up looking forward to the day, and not be sleeping on her couch. She couldn't help it though. Looking at the mattress of her bed reminded her of the mattress in the basement...

_No! _ Olivia told herself. She could not think about that. She refused to think about that. Thinking about it would make her relive it...again and again...like the nightmares did. Only in the nightmares, it wasn't Olivia in that basement. It was her mother.

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The day was slow by normal standards. The detectives were almost solely on paperwork duty, with no new cases reported. It was, in fact, so quiet and so dull that Elliot remarked that it was actually better when they were buried in work. The meeting with the FBI began to look like the light at the end of the tunnel. However, it gave them time to do something they almost never got to do – go out to lunch, the four of them. Olivia ordered a moderate amount, but the guys still found themselves surrendering the majority of their lunches to her anyway, none of them wanting to be on the receiving end of the withering glare they knew would come their way if they refused to "share".

"Damn, Stabler. Your girl sure can pack it away." Fin remarked with an admiring whistle.

Elliot's head shot up at "your girl". He glared at Fin, but Olivia seemed to have not heard him, so he thought better of commenting on that.

Olivia finally looked up from her food to Fin and Munch's nearly empty plates.

"God, guys. You finished fast."

Fin and Munch looked at each other, but to their credit managed to keep from bursting into laughter. Fin threw down a few bills and checked his watch.

"Damn, it's gotten late! We gotta get back now if we want to make that meeting on time."

With that, the detectives stood and quickly made their way back to the 16th precinct. Cragen ran to them as soon as they walked in.

"There you are! Agents Mulder and Scully are upstairs. Go over the case, theories, suspects, then reconvene tomorrow to follow any solid leads."

The detectives nodded with a bemused smile. No matter what the circumstance, Cragen always knew how to boss everyone around. That was what made him such a great captain, they guessed. God knows it's not an easy task not only dealing with sex crimes day in and day out, but keeping them in line as well was hard work. The agents left their captain in his office and ran upstairs to greet the new arrivals.

The files were already open on the table, and two figures were poring over them. They were so deeply involved in what seemed to be a debate over the validity of the case. The agents spoke quietly, but Olivia could catch snippets of what they were saying.

"...has to be a perfectly reasonable explanation for this..."

"...scientists have actually theorized that there is a good chance that spirits, or ghosts, actually do exist, just not in the form that they're misconceptionalized in..."

"...Mulder, why can't you just accept the facts..."

Olivia watched with her interest piqued as the two agents argued with two very different views, but also with a clearly open mind to the other's opinion. They reminded her of the way her and Elliot used to be: arguing playfully, but ultimately in tune and open to each other. When had that stopped? Olivia was sure she didn't know, but she missed it terribly.

From behind Olivia, Munch cleared his throat loudly, causing the agents to look up.

"Agent Mulder, long time no see." Munch said jokingly, shaking the man's hand.

"Likewise, Detective Munch. By the way, Frokike, Byers and Langly told me to say hi for them," the man said jokingly as he returned the handshake. "I don't think you've met my partner, though. John Munch, this is Agent Scully." The woman stepped forward and shook Munch's hand as well.

The group greeted each other with friendly exteriors, but distrust lurked in all of them. Olivia scanned the two agents up and down, an instinct that comes with being a detective, she guessed.

Fox Mulder was a tall, lanky man, with brown hair and hazel eyes. He had an earnest, kind face, Olivia noted, but there was a dark past that seemed to hide behind his eyes. He was handsome, but seemed very reserved and guarded. He stood in stark contrast to his partner.

Dana Scully was a small woman; at least, standing next to Agent Mulder she was. She had red hair cut into a bob around her face, and big blue-green eyes, eyes that seemed lighter in spirit than Agent Mulder's, but still riddled with secrets. The most notable thing Olivia noticed about Agent Scully was how perfect she seemed. Not a hair was out of place, her nails were perfect, her eyebrows were perfectly plucked, and even her business suit was without a single wrinkle.

As a team, they strangely seemed to click. Olivia couldn't quite put her finger on what it was, but they just radiated an essence that made them seem like the perfect team. Olivia's mind drifted back to her and Elliot. They used to have that too. Olivia was surprised to feel an ache of longing in her stomach. What she wouldn't give to be that in tune with someone again.

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**A/N: So there you have it! Sorry there was no interaction, but I was in a hurry writing this chapter. X-Files/SVU interaction in the next one, I promise! I'm really looking forward to writing it, because I think there will be some great tension between Elliot and Mulder, since they're VERY different people. They don't strike me as two people who would get along particularly well. **

**For anyone confused about how Mulder and/or the Lone Gunmen know each other, see "Unusual Suspects", Season 5 of the X-Files. **


	3. The New Enemy

**A/N: Wow, long weekend flew by! Here's a new chapter, I'm already writing the ending in my head lol. Always happens, that's why long stories are torturous to write, I want to write the ending so badly but there's so much to cover first!**

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The briefing of the case took only a few minutes. Agents Mulder and Scully were devoted to their work, and had already reviewed the case many times. This was the latest in many such cases for them, so they led the SVU squad in their theories, which worked out well for the most part, since the squad was at a loss even on where to begin. But Scully and Mulder dealt with it almost as if it was an everyday occurrence, a perfectly ordinary case.

During the briefing, one of the things that shone through to Olivia was how Mulder seemed to passionately believe in what he was saying. His eyes lit up when he was talking about the case, or any other kind of paranormal occurrence. Olivia had never given much thought to the idea of biological entities, aliens, U.F.O.'s and the like, but she had always kept an open mind, as she also found it ignorant to think that out of millions of stars, planets and galaxies, theirs was the only one with life on it.

"Historically, there have been many reports of so-called entity rapes, but in the time where women were considered possessions, the reaction amounted to husbands angered at the fact that their wife had been intimate with someone – or something- else.

Mulder talked on and on about his theories, relating examples back to historical events. Coming from him, his theories seemed almost sound. His partner, though, shook her head and interrupted, correcting him with firm scientific theories.

"Mulder, I know I don't have to tell you that entity rapes are almost always a sign of psychological illness. This woman fits the mold – she's a young woman, full load of classes, lots of stress. There is every likelihood that this is simply her folding under pressure and crying out for help."

"Scully, you saw those bruises, there's no way she could have inflicted it upon herself..."

"She said herself, Mulder, she doesn't remember most of the attack, nor does she remember the events leading up to it..."

"PTSD, Scully. How many times have you seen it?"

The agents faced each other again, now in a debate. The squad watched in fascination, until they heard Elliot clearing his throat behind them.

"Look, I really don't mean to be disrespectful or bring down your work, but we all know aliens don't exist and this woman was certainly not raped by one. If she doesn't remember, it's probably PTSD, like your partner said. We've seen it before on countless rape victims."

Mulder looked at Elliot and walked towards him.

"Actually Detective, there's been strong evidence throughout history to prove –"

" But they haven't proved anything, have they? There's no sense turning this into a circus show if we don't have to. Damn, if I told you about all the freaks me and Liv have collared, this wouldn't seem odd at all. Some rapists just get off on making themselves a mystery."

Mulder stood to his full height. He didn't like the look of this detective. He had met many like Elliot Stabler before, close-minded and confident in themselves. The kind of man that talked through his fists and not his mouth.

From behind, Scully stood watching the exchange, the same thoughts circulating in her head as were in Mulder's head. People like Elliot Stabler brought out the worst side in Mulder. When he was on a case, he was already on a crusade, but when someone challenged him and his beliefs, he was on a mission, and that mission included proving the skeptic wrong.

"Detective, I don't mean any _disrespect_ to you and your work, but my partner and I have seen thing that probably only exist in your nightmares, the kind of things nobody believes in anymore, now that the government has been on a mission to bury the truth."

" The _truth_? This is science fiction! Aliens and government conspiracies, godammit..."

"Actually, the opposite, detective, this was very possibly a paranormal, possibly extraterrestrial force, but I don't happen to believe it was alien in nature. The facts of this case..."

"_Facts_? There are no facts! This case is nothing more than voices in a young woman's head..." Elliot began advancing threateningly towards Mulder, but he wasn't afraid. He leaned in tauntingly to Elliot.

Olivia and Scully moved at once. Olivia pulled Elliot back, whispering sharply to him. Scully pulled Mulder back, speaking in a soothing but pointed and angry voice.

"Don't do this Mulder, we were sent here to solve this case, there have been too many instances of you going to war with a colleague, you can't..."

Elliot suddenly shook Olivia's arm free and stormed downstairs, muttering darkly to himself. Olivia looked at the FBI duo in embarrassment, noting that their heads were bent together and Scully was still talking to Mulder in the same hushed but pointed voice. She lifted her head and the fight visibly drained from Mulder.

"I'm sorry about Elliot," Olivia said quickly. "He's just...really invested in our work."

"Oh, I know what that's like." Mulder said with a friendly smile. "I also know what it's like to work with someone who is _constantly _second-guessing you."

"Do you?" said Olivia, smiling also.

"Yup. Won her over, though." he replied playfully, jerking his head to indicate Agent Scully.

Scully smacked Mulder jokingly on the arm and they all laughed. Elliot didn't come back up, but they could faintly hear him and the captain speaking in raised voices. For once, however, Olivia didn't pay attention, to intrigued by their new colleagues.

_Oh yeah,_ Olivia thought to herself. _This is definitely going to be new._

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**A/N#2: And there' chapter 3! Did that meet expectations for Mulder/Elliot confrontation? I apologize if all my writing recently makes Elliot seem like a jerk, but I find him to be a "gun ready to go off", as Scully would say, recently. Feedback, PLEASE! This is my first crossover, I'd really like to know if people are liking it. **


	4. The New Victim

**A/N: Sorry about the wait with this one, I was completely stumped as to where to go with this for the longest time. If you only watch SVU and not X-Files, you may find the rest of this story a little confusing. Any questions, feel free to ask.**

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The next day, the investigation into the case officially began. The agents had suggested that they go talk to the investigation officers, and then the victim. The detectives agreed, but told them that the crime scene was a bit of a drive away.

"I'll drive," Elliot volunteered. Olivia regarded him sharply. He hadn't told her what he and the Captain had said yesterday, but he seemed to be making an effort to make nice, which Olivia appreciated.

Munch and Fin were going to talk with CSU, so Mulder, Scully, Elliot and Olivia climbed into the car and set off for the crime scene. After a little while, Olivia finally broke the uncomfortable silence.

"So how long have you been working together?" she asked.

"Six years," Mulder and Scully replied in unison. They looked at each other and smiled and Olivia smiled also.

"Actually, I was a medical doctor originally," said Scully. "But I decided I wanted to go into the FBI, so they assigned me to 'provide an analytical perspective' on Mulder's work."

"Which basically means she was sent to spy on me." Mulder cut in, his voice serious with a joking undertone.

"Oh. I guess the FBI must really appreciate your work," Olivia commented.

Mulder and Scully scoffed.

"Not exactly. They've tried to shut us down in a million different ways, a million different times."

Olivia furrowed her brow in confusion.

"Then, if you don't mind my asking...why were you so determined to keep doing this?"

Mulder and Scully looked at each other pensively for a moment, as if deciding how to answer.

After awhile, Mulder finally spoke.

"So they don't bury the truth."

Olivia heard a very soft disbelieving snort from beside her, but she shot Elliot a warning look, making his eyes turn back to the road.

"If you don't mind my saying so, Agent Scully, this kind of thing isn't something you would usually see a person trained to believe that science has an answer for everything would be working to prove. Have you always believed in this kind of phenomena?"

Mulder laughed at this, and Olivia saw Scully shoot him a warning look nearly identical to the one Olivia had just given Elliot.

"Uhh...not exactly. One of the reasons they assigned me to Mulder and the X-Files in the first place is because of my background in hard science, I suppose you could say they sent me to debunk his work. Some of the things that we see are so incredibly hard to believe, and believing in all the things that Mulder does is....difficult. I've come to believe, over the years, that extraterrestrial forces do exist, and that they are among us."

Olivia nodded. This woman struck her as a very smart person, and if she was able to be convinced that these alien life forms exist, there must have been some halfway solid logic behind it.

"What kind of things have you seen?"

The woman took a deep breath, as if debating where to begin.

"I still firmly believe that a good deal of what we see can be explained by science, but some things defy even the most outward bounds of science. We've seen people who Mulder believes....are certain phenomena. There was a man who he believed not only _was_ cancer, but needed it to survive. He was seemingly able to regenerate any body part lost. His thumb, his head, even his entire body. There was also a young man we met, who was seemingly able to control lightning...."

Olivia listened, fascinated, to the two agents. Elliot, however, was finding it harder and harder to control his scepticism.

"I'm sorry..." he began. "But I find this incredibly hard to believe. Impossible, really. I have to admit, it seems like there must have been another explanation, other than the ones you've come up with. People just aren't _cancer _itself."

Mulder snorted laughingly.

"Believe me, if there was, Scully would have found it. You have no idea how hard it was to convince her of the cancer one, especially because..."

Scully laid a hand on Mulder's arm, and whispered his name gently. He looked at her for a moment, her eyes pleading him not to tell, and nodded affirmatively.

"...it just was." Mulder finished lamely.

Olivia looked at them and decided against pressing further, just as Elliot eased the car into the street by the victim's apartment. Olivia opened her mouth to start to advise the agents of the method to question a rape victim, but Scully cut her off before she could.

"Don't worry, Detective Benson, we've done this before. Don't press too hard, but keep going if it seems like the victim can handle it, don't offer comfort unless it's requested, and so on," she said with a smile.

Olivia smiled also, and followed the agents into the victim's apartment.

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Jennifer Meyer was a small woman for her age. She was roughly Scully's height, with long brown hair and blue eyes. As she spoke to the agents, she was curled up on her couch, wearing sweats and a suspicious expression.

"Nobody believed me before," she snapped. "Why should I think you'll believe me now?"

Mulder smiled disarmingly at her.

"Ms. Meyer, I guarantee you that even though the other officers didn't believe you, there is nothing you could say that would shock me." Mulder reached across the table and put his hand on top of hers. "I promise."

The young woman's eyes immediately filled with tears. She looked down, trying to collect herself for a moment.

After they heard a few soft sobs, she looked up.

"I lied when I said I never saw any of him," she began. "I did...but I'm not sure I really saw what I think I did..."

"Tell us," Scully said gently.

Jennifer let out a gasping breath.

"I think...it was a man. I thought I saw brown hair. And...." she broke off, looking at them tentatively.

"His eyes were frightening. It was like there was some kind of black substance in them."

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After they had questioned the victim, they met Munch and Fin back in the bullpen. The looks of complete confusion on Munch and Fin's faces matched Elliot and Olivia's exactly.

"Hey!" Olivia called. "What did CSU find?"

Munch and Fin walked up to them, shaking their heads.

"Dr. Queen isn't even sure. They found this black stuff at the crime scene, and the best I.D. they could make was...it was a form of black oil."

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**A/N: And we journey into more X-Files territory! I got a great response on the last chapter, please keep it up! Enjoy, read and review!**


	5. The New Friends

**A/N: Well, school has been completely easy nowadays, with little to no homework, so I got bored and decided to write a new chapter. I repeat, you don't have to watch X-Files to read this fic, but it would definitely help (and I certainly recommend it, best sci-fi drama in the universe). Also I've decided that even though I said Doggett and Reyes would be in this fic, I've changed it to three characters that are from the X-Files and we all know and detest (makes it fun to write them lol). **

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"Black oil?" Elliot questioned. "Why the hell would they find black oil at the scene of a rape?"

"CSU isn't sure." Fin replied. "They couldn't even tell us what it's made of. Dr. Queen says she's never seen anything quite like it before...she couldn't even identify the components in it. All she could tell us was that this is not a new substance...by the look of it, it's been around for centuries, even millenniums."

"What the hell could that mean? What's the significance of that?"

"Nobody can tell, Stabler. For all we know, it means nothing, but for right now, it's the only lead we have."

The group stood around, inspecting the jar of black oil as if the answer was going to suddenly jump out at them, when Mulder walked up quietly, and took the jar from Fin, walking it carefully back over to Scully. Their heads bent together, as they quietly conferred. Again, Olivia heard the snippets of what they were saying.

"...can't be..."

"...we should send it to the gunmen..."

"...but why would their action of choice be to rape a university student..."

"...no telling what they'll do..."

"...if it is, case is over..."

"...victim did tell us she saw a black substance in her rapist's eyes..."

Finally, Olivia broke in.

"Do you know what this is?"

Mulder and Scully raised their heads, but not before Scully shot a warning look to Mulder, as if warning him against saying too much.

Scully hesitated before speaking. "We may. It looks similar to something we've seen in people before, but I don't want to jump to any conclusions. We'll send it to the Lone Gunmen to analyse, and they'll probably be able to tell us what it is.

"_The Lone Gunmen?"_ Elliot inquired his tone more questioning than accusatory.

Mulder laughed. "Our favourite conspiracy theorists. Don't let their name fool you, they're tech wizards. They help us out a lot along the way, and one is trained at analysing biogenetics. We'll send a sample to them, they'll be able to tell us what they think it is."

Cragen came out of his office and up to greet the agents. He shook their hands and they exchanged small talk about the bureau.

"Make any solid breaks in the case?" he inquired, turning to his detectives.

Now it was Olivia's turn to hesitate. "...We're not sure."

"Not sure?" Cragen echoed.

"We found something at the crime scene that CSU says is a form of black oil, but we're not sure if it has any significance." Munch cut in smoothly.

"Oh...." Cragen still looked confused, and perhaps a little suspicious that he was being left in the dark, but Munch knew his captain would be happier if they gave him a long briefing full of solid leads, and they just didn't have that yet.

"Well, Captain, if it's okay with you, we've done about all we can for today, so we're gonna take these guys out for a drink. I don't suppose you want to come?" said Munch

"Well, gee, John, let me run it by the guys at my next AA meeting." Cragen quipped sarcastically.

Exchanging smiles, the group headed out to Barney's Bar. Olivia and Scully sat down next to each other, and an easy conversation followed. Olivia found Scully very easy to talk to, and they talked while the men drank and chatted amongst themselves.

"So, Agent Scully..."

"Dana, please. If you're going to say Agent Scully every time you want to talk to me, this conversation's going to take twice as long."

Olivia chuckled. "If you don't mind my asking, what's going on with you and your partner?"

Scully looked up sharply. "What do you mean?"

"I don't really know how to explain it...just...you sort of look at each other like you're more than...friends and partners...I don't know, there's just this kind of thing that you guys have where...you just seem to fit..." Olivia broke off, looking at Scully.

Scully stirred her drink thoughtfully for a moment, then took a sip.

"To tell you the truth, I'm not even sure. Mulder and I have always been...affectionate, I guess you would say. We're the only two people assigned to the X-Files, and I guess our peers are kind of scared of us, of what we do, so we are pretty much all the other has." Scully paused, a genuinely happy smile appearing on her face.

"Mulder's not who you expect him to be. Everyone says he's crazy, obsessed, 'spooky', but he's not like that. He's....devoted, passionate. And he has this fierce determination to help everyone. It's actually very...inspiring to be around." Dana's hesitation indicated that she had a different word in mind, but she shook her head and seemed to snap out of the trance.

"What about you and your partner? You seem to be pretty in tune."

Olivia smiled wistfully. "We used to be. I used to be able to tell him anything, and vice versa. He was my best friend."

"And now?"

Olivia's expression grew sad. "I don't know what changed, I honestly don't. Now...we're just like...just like strangers." Olivia stared down into her cup, trying to mask the tears that blurred her vision. Ever perceptive, Scully put her hand comfortingly on Olivia's arm.

Down the bar, a less peaceful conversation was taking place. While Munch and Fin had been listening with interest to Mulder ramble on about his work, while Elliot sat silently at the bar, nursing a scotch and glowering. He didn't know what it was specifically about this man that made him so angry, but maybe it was because Elliot was used to intimidating the people he didn't like, however that didn't work on Fox Mulder. He would taunt him, daring him to take a swing.

It was when he heard Munch and Fin laugh that he couldn't hold it in anymore, or maybe it was the scotch's talking through him.

"You really think you're better than us, don't you?"

Mulder looked up, and immediately a defensive look sprung onto his face. Elliot swung out of his stool and approached the other man, leaning right in his face.

"With your crazy theories, and your idiotic ramblings, it's no wonder they call you spooky. Shit, I'm surprised they could even find one person who puts up with you."

If Mulder wasn't angry before, the mention of his partner made him jump off his chair and meet Elliot's angry look.

"Yeah, and is it true what they call you? _Un-stabler_, was it? So hard to tell, you seem so stable."

Elliot's hands clenched into fists, but Mulder continued tauntingly, leaning in so their noses were inches apart.

"At least _I_ treat my partner like she actually means something to me."

Elliot lunged forward, but Munch and Fin caught him before he could land any blows.

Scully and Olivia heard the commotion, and rushed over immediately. Scully reached Mulder, who was itching to deck Elliot, she could tell. Unable to stop him physically, she stepped in between him and Elliot, and Mulder immediately stopped. Olivia stood beside her, stopping Elliot as well.

"OK, that's better," said Olivia, talking as if she were speaking to two children on the playground.

Scully continued in the same tone. "Now, I don't know why you two seem so determined to beat the hell out of each other, but you have to learn to play nicely, or we're gonna have to take away your toys."

Exchanging a smile, the women dragged their partners forcefully out of the bar, so fast that nobody noticed a figure in the corner watching them, partially obscured by darkness, but noticeable by the smoke curling from his Morley cigarette.

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**A/N: And that's all she wrote! PLEASE review, I'd love input...how was the girls' conversation? Are the fights to overdone? MSR goodness....sighs. Anyone know who the figure in the corner is? **


	6. The New Help

**A/N: So I have been totally neglecting this story, but I lost my inspiration for awhile, so while I wait for SVU to come on I'm going to start a new chapter. **

**I've also decided that this story is going to be far shorter then my story The Meaning Of Family. Offhand, I'm not sure how long it'll be, but about 10 chapters sounds about right. **

**But is anyone else still hating the new ADA? I think we've given her a fair chance and for her snarky comment about Casey, I think I can safely say that Casey was 100000x more dedicated to the job.....**

**Spoilers: General X-Files spoilers, small Fight The Future, Vienen **

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The next few days were a challenge. They had made almost no breaks in the case, even thought the agents had sent the black oil off to the Lone Gunmen, they hadn't gotten back to them. They followed a few leads, but ended up at dead ends, and the information they did have was not telling them anything new.

Tensions were mounting in the SVU squad room on the sunny Friday when they finally did get a call back from the Gunmen, telling them they were in New York for a Dungeons and Dragons convention (the squad tried admirably hard not to laugh at this), and they would stop by to give their thoughts on the black oil. Mulder let out a sigh of relief at this news. He and Elliot had been making a decent effort to get along since their near bar brawl earlier, but they were most certainly not friends. In fact, Elliot still noticed Mulder step protectively closer to his partner whenever Elliot came close, as if he was afraid Elliot might hurt her, whether it be physically or emotionally.

The agents, almost imperceptively, had blended so well into the squad, that sometimes it felt as if they had been there much longer. Munch and Mulder bonded over conspiracy theories, but Mulder still laughed and rolled his eyes with Fin when Munch went off on one if his tirades about black helicopters or another one of his endless theories.

Olivia and Scully were becoming fast friends, to the surprise of most. At first glance, they didn't seem to have much in common, this refined FBI agent and this tough New York detective. But they had started meeting after work for drinks, talking animatedly amongst themselves. Olivia found Dana very easy to like, and since Casey left she hadn't had anyone to talk to. Olivia hadn't realized how much she had missed having someone to talk to, not about work, but just normal stuff between friends. They had a lot in common, including knowing what it was like to be a woman in a male dominated business.

They were going to miss the agents when they left, but they still had a case to solve.

The squad had called Jennifer down to their squad room after she revealed that she actually had caught a glimpse of their attacker, after assuring her again and again that she would not get into trouble with them for lying, but they had been able to get little other details besides brown hair and a black liquid in his eyes. Jennifer had said he never spoke to her so there was no way she could identify his voice. He had left no other evidence, either. Jennifer's hospital examination had shown nothing except for much higher levels of radiation in her system, which they still didn't have an explanation to, but it was just one more mystery to add to the growing list.

The mood was broken when suddenly three men appeared in the door. They looked ridiculously out of place in the dreary bullpen, one with long blond hair and a Ramones t-shirt, one short man with a leather coat and hair pulled into a ponytail, and one with a suit and neatly trimmed hair. Mulder and Scully, however, recognized them immediately. Mulder jumped up from his desk and greeted them enthusiastically.

"Got something for us, guys?" he asked.

The Lone Gunmen hesitated.

"...Maybe it would be better if we could just speak with Mulder and Scully," the neatly dressed one finally replied.  
Mulder looked around as if considering it, but Cragen gave him a look, and he reluctantly conceded

"It's their case too. Just tell all of us. Although some may believe it more than others," Mulder replied, adding the last sentence under his breath.

Looking doubtfully at each other, the Gunmen shrugged.

"We did an analysis on the black oil you sent us," Byers, the neatly trimmed man began. "Actually, we did many tests on it. And...it seems to be what you thought it was, Mulder."

"And what is that?" Cragen asked impatiently.

Now it was Mulder's turn to hesitate.

"The black oil is something Scully and I discovered three years ago. It's said to have existed before the dinosaurs even walked the earth. It's what's known as an alien virus. It absorbs into its host, pooling in the third ventricle of the brain, until it takes control and allows...a gray alien being to gestate, eventually killing the host."

There was silence in the squad room for what felt like hours, until the man with the long blond hair, Langley, cut in.

"We did a ton of tests before we came to this, we analysed the biological structure, the components, everything. This is one secret the Syndicate's really trying to keep under wraps."

"...Syndicate?" Olivia asked.

_Later_, Scully mouthed and Olivia fell silent. Mulder turned to the Lone Gunmen again, looking like his head was spinning.

"There could be thousands of people infected with the black oil...how are we supposed to narrow it down to one rapist?" Mulder grumbled, putting his head in his hands.

"Hey man, narrowing down until the freak is caught is something we do every day," said Fin. "We'll catch this guy. At least now we have something to go on."

Thus slightly cheered, the group returned to work.

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He sat in his dark office, puffing nervously, one cigarette after the other. This wasn't good. How could the idiot leave the oil at the scene? He had hired them to clean it of any traces. He made a mental note to get his men to take care of the "cleaner".

They were getting too close. Too close to the truth about this case. To close to the truth that could expose them, expose their work and their goal. This couldn't carry on. But who to take care of first.

He pondered this for awhile, then, out of nowhere, Strughold's words rang in his head.

"_Kill him, we risk turning one man's quest into a crusade."_

"_Then you must take away what he holds most valuable. That with which he can't live without."_

A thin smile curved on his lips. Yes. This would work. They must proceed with caution, however. After all, the most dangerous thing to them would be someone who has nothing left to lose. It must be quick, clean and contained.

He nodded resolutely. Soon. They had to protect themselves. A few days, a week perhaps, and this would all be just a bad dream.

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**A/N: And that's it! I'm getting a great response to this story, please keep up the reviews! They make me very happy, and let's review:**

**Many reviews= happy author. Happy author=more updates. More updates= MSR cuteness!**


	7. The New Dance

**A/N: Hey, anyone remember this story? I have a plethora of apologies ready, including many short stories for school and a lack of creative energy, but I won't waste time on them. I'm already working on a sequel to this, I've got the first two chapters and I already like it. Since this is the seventh chapter, I'm thinking that there will probably be 10 chapters. **

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"....so, their plan is, if they can 'surveil' us enough, they can get a heads up on terrorism plans. But it never even _occurs_ to them that they are completely trampling on basic human rights..."

Fin thumped his head again and again against his desk as he listened with half an ear to his partner ramble on and on in another one of his endless conspiracy theories. Mulder, however, was jumping right into Munch's tirade with his own conspiracy theories ("...the _shadow_ operations, they'll do anything to protect it, they don't even care how many innocents they have to kill...")

Fin was starting to think maybe Mulder and Munch would be a better team than them, but their individual fights were very different, and he had been working with the older man so long that he had honed his ability to tone out the constant conspiracies, and truth be told, he respected Munch for his intelligence and skill.

The case had been coming along, so to speak, in the three days since the Lone Gunmen's visit. The three men had stayed for a day, and even Elliot had to admit, the men worked hard and knew what they were talking about. Munch was in heaven, having never been with so many conspiracy theorists, at one time.

They hadn't heard from Jennifer recently, which was really just as well, they weren't going to get any new details out of her. Mulder and Scully had told them everything they knew about the black oil, but they still had no suspects.

On Friday night, the squad wrapped up their work at 8 o'clock, a fairly early hour by normal standards. Olivia and Scully were going to go out, and Scully had asked Mulder to come along. Olivia had asked Elliot, but he had replied that he had better make an appearance at home or Kathy was going to be pretty steamed, so Munch and Fin were going along. Cragen had also decided to come, after some persuasion ("Captain, it's okay to go out once every twenty years or so!", a statement that had left Munch on the receiving end of a withering glare).

With the Lone Gunmen at their Dungeons and Dragons convention – this time, the laughter couldn't be kept back, especially at the Gunmen's proud tone – the six of them set out for the bar. Cragen trailed behind with Mulder, Munch and Fin walked in companionable silence, and Olivia and Scully talked quietly at the lead.

The dinner was packed with greasy food, little to no alcohol for Cragen's sake, and loud, overlapping conversations. Everyone talked to everyone; all having a good time, but Olivia couldn't help but wish Elliot was there. When the first and seconds of dinner had been eaten away, the group still lingered at their table, talking, escaping their work for a few hours. Music had been playing faintly in the background the whole time, but when the first few notes of a song floated over the dance floor, Mulder's head perked up.

"_Put on my blue suede shoes and I boarded the plane._

_Touched down in the land of the Delta Blues, in the middle of the pouring rain."_

Mulder smiled, slid out of the booth, and slid over to Scully in an Elvis-like move. He held his hand out to her as the notes floated out of the speakers. Scully smiled and took Mulder's offered hand, with a characteristic lift of her eyebrow and an "Again, Mulder?"

Mulder swept Scully into his arms and they swayed gently to the music, looking straight into each other's eyes. Olivia watched with a knowing smile. No matter what Dana said, there was clearly something between her and her partner.

"_W.C. Handy, won't you look down over me?_

_Cause I've got a first class ticket, and I'm blue as a boy can be"_

The group watched the pair in silence, but Mulder and Scully hardly seemed to notice. Scully laid her head down on Mulder's chest, and he held their joined hands close to him as the song played itself out.

"_And they brought me down to see her, _

_And they asked me if I would do a little number_

_And I sang with all my might_

_She said "tell me, are you a Christian?" and I said_

"_Ma'am, I am tonight!"_

The last soft piano notes of the song filtered through the speakers, and the spell was broken. Mulder and Scully broke apart awkwardly and looked at the SVU squad as if they had just noticed them. They started to head back to their table when the music started again.

"_Jeremiah was a bullfrog,_

_Was a good friend of mine"_

The agents looked at each other and burst into fits of laughter.

"It's a sign, Scully!" Mulder laughed. They turned and swept back onto the dance floor, this time in a fun, loose dance.

Fin laughed with them and slid out of the booth. He grabbed Olivia's hand and, in a rare burst of energy, shouted,

"C'mon, baby girl, let's join 'em!"

Olivia grinned broadly and allowed herself to be dragged out, joining Mulder and Scully on the dance floor, laughing delightedly as Fin dipped her close to the ground.

"_Joy to the world, all the boys and girls,_

_Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea,_

_Joy to you and me!"_

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In the aftermath of their evening out, Mulder and Scully returned to their hotel rooms, still laughing and talking. Policy dictated they still were required to sleep in separate rooms, but Mulder pulled out _Steel Magnolias_, and successfully bribed Scully into his hotel room. They had just come through the doorway when Mulder stopped short. There was a figure sitting in the dark room, holding a cigarette to his lips.

Mulder grabbed his gun and pointed it at the man both of them knew.

"Get up!" Mulder barked, but the figure didn't move.

"Get up and get out, you black lunged son of a bitch, or I swear I'll shoot you!"

Cancer Man simply smiled and took a drag of his cigarette.

"Don't threaten me, Mulder, I've watched presidents die." His voice was cold, calm and absolutely chilling.

"What the hell do you want?!"

Another drag. "You've come far, in this investigation. Too far, I venture."

Mulder glared. "Afraid we're finally going to expose the truth? Who will you have to kill to keep it quiet this time?"

Cancer Man's expression never changed. "A man would be foolish, Agent Mulder, to press on this. I give you that you know this person you seek, from many times before. As a friend and as a foe." He stood, put out his cigarette, and promptly lit another with his 'Trust Nobody' lighter. The tall man strode for the door, but turned just long enough to add,

"Choose your victories carefully, Agent Mulder. Nothing comes without a sacrifice, and I would hope that should you pursue this, you'd be willing to sacrifice something very near and dear to you."

With that, the dark figure strode out the door, the only taste of his presence the lingering smell of Morley cigarettes.

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**A/N#2: I just had to add that CSM line in, only because it's possibly his coolest line in the series! Reviews please!**


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